FBI’s involvement in the Merida Initiative.
Kenneth W. Kaiser Assistant Director Federal Bureau of Investigation made the following Statement in Feb 2008. Before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere.
The FBI Assistant Director told the committee that modern gangs increasingly attempt to spread their influence and operate across state lines and international borders. Through years of experience in combating transnational organized criminal groups,
The FBI in 2004 launched the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) National Gang Task Force (NGTF) to coordinate and support local, state, federal, and international law enforcement operations and prosecutions.
The Merida Initiative
The Merida Initiative enhances the Bureau’s long standing efforts to enable Mexico and the countries of Central America to build their capacity to fight organized crime and drug trafficking, thus improving regional security and stability. With the significant support and funding of the Merida Initiative, which has allowed the FBI to sharpen its focus on cross-border collaboration, the Bureau is better equipped to investigate international criminal organizations such as the MS-13 and 18th Street Gangs. These expanding partnerships with our neighbors to the South have proven to be especially fruitful in the following two contexts.
Transnational Anti-Gang Task Force
The FBI’s NGTF created and implemented, with funding from the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), the Transnational Anti-Gang (TAG) Task Force to assist in combating the growing threat posed by transnational gangs and drug cartels in Latin America. The TAG combines the expertise, resources, and jurisdiction of participating agencies involved in investigating and countering transnational criminal gang activity in the United States. The objective of the TAG is to aggressively investigate, disrupt, and dismantle gangs whose activities rise to the level of criminal enterprises. Through information sharing and open communication with the participating countries, the TAG is in a position to acquire and disseminate valuable information previously unavailable to U.S. law enforcement agencies. The TAG has extended the reach of U.S. law enforcement and set a foundation for effective two-way communication between participating countries.
Law Enforcement Online (LEO)
The FBI’s NGTF administers a LEO website providing user-friendly anytime and anywhere electronic communication which offers secure transmission of sensitive but unclassified global intelligence. The NGTF has a LEO Special Interest Group that allows authorized LEO subscribers to securely share information, view NGTF initiatives, support investigative operations, send/post notifications and alerts, exchange intelligence, review MS-13 global trends, view/download NGTF intelligence products and PowerPoint presentations, add subscriber comments/suggestions, review specialized training, obtain resources, have real time secure discussions, as well as many other functions. This website allows secure communication between the applicable law enforcement entities in the United States and the participating agencies in Central America.
National Gang Intelligence Center (NGIC)
The FBI led NGIC is comprised of representatives from numerous law enforcement, intelligence, and defense agencies. As a result of its far reaching bandwidth, the NGIC is a critical tool for the sharing of information. Intelligence derived from the above discussed initiatives and programs is provided to NGIC for analysis and dissemination. In addition, NGIC officials input transnational gang member data into the Violent Gang Terrorist Organization File (VGTOF) to ensure the widest possible dissemination of intelligence concerning these violent gang members.
Among the primary consumers of NGIC generated intelligence is the Gang Targeting, Enforcement and Coordination Center (GangTECC), a multi-agency center co-located with NGIC designed to serve as a critical catalyst in a unified federal effort to disrupt and dismantle the most significant and violent gangs. Senior GangTECC investigators come from the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the United States Marshals Service (USMS) and the Bureau of Prisons (BOP). These investigators work together to achieve maximum impact at the national level against the most violent gangs in this country.
Conclusion
The Merida Initiative has fostered greater information sharing and collaboration between the United States, Mexico, and the countries of Central America. The programs discussed above, as well as others, will continue to provide a better understanding of the gang problem on a regional level. Combating violent crime and gangs is a priority of law enforcement throughout this hemisphere. By working together through these partnerships, we are creating a force multiplier to make use of combined resources in the most effective way possible.